Heat radiating device



Jan. 25, 1966 J. SHENUSKI 3,231,011

HEAT RADIATING DEVICE Filed July 22, 1964 F/G/ 4i INVENTOR. JOHNSHENUSKI ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,231,011 HEAT RADIATING DEVECEJohn Shenuski, 503 Back Laue, Newington, Conn. Filed July 22, 1964, Ser.No. 384,434 2 Claims. (Cl. 165-80) This invention relates to an improvedheat radiating device of the type customarily used with a heat sourcehaving a cylindrical outside configuration such as pipes, fiues, and thelike.

In the prior art it has been common to use fins of high conductivitymaterial secured in contact with pipes, or a similar heat source so asto transfer thermal energy from the heat source to the surrounding air,for instance. One of the most common types of heat radiating devices isan array of fins fixed at right angles to a pipe carrying hot water.This arrangement is in general use for heating homes and other smallbuildings by disposing a series of such heat radiating devices about theinside perimeter of the building.

Still other prior art arrangements provide channels to surround a heatsource and thereby transfer heat from the source to the surroundingmedium. In these arrangements, it is common for the channels or fins tobe aligned in a nearly vertical position in order to effect heattransfer by convection.

The present invention by a unique configuration is adapted to enclose aheat source and effect heat transfer by convection regardless of theangular disposition of the heat source. Additionally, the presentinvention is readily arranged in pressure contact with the heat sourceby a simple, reliable, and effective means made possible through theimproved configuration of the device.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved heatradiating device which is simple and inexpensive to fabricate, as wellas being adaptable to use on heat sources of different sizes.

Another principal object of the present invention is to afford improvedheat transfer by convection regardless of the spatial disposition of theheat source.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a heatradiating device which is resiliently expandable to enclose a heatsource in pressure contact.

Other objects and additional advantages of the present invention will beapparent from a reading of the follow ing detailed description and theclaims taken together with the attached drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation showing several typical employments of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken through section 2-2 of FIG. 1,and,

FIG. 3 is an isometric view of a preferred embodiment of the presentinvention.

The present invention in its preferred embodiment comprises a sheet offlexible or resilient material having high thermal conductivity, whichmaterial is formed into contiguous corrugations. The corrugationspreferably have a substantially greater depth than pitch and are alsoskewed rather than being parallel to an edge of the material. With therelatively deep corrugations, the heat radiating device is readilyexpandable to enclose heat sources of a variety of sizes. Additionally,the deep corrugations provide a greater exposure of heat radiatingsurface, therefore affording more efilcient heat transfer.

l ice The skewed corrugations assume a spiral-like configuration whenthe heat radiating device is expanded to enclose a pipe, for instance.This affords one of the principal advantages of the present invention inthat improved heat transfer by convection of the currents of thesurrounding air is achieved regardless of the disposition of the heatsource, i.e., whether the heat source has a major axis which ishorizontal or vertical.

Generally V-shaped, contiguous corrugations are particularly effectiveas they provide for maximum contact of the air in the inner V-shapedchannels with the heat source for heat transfer by convectiontherewithin and also in the outer V-shaped channels while simultaneouslyallowing the radiating surfaces to function efiiciently. As can be seenin FIGURE 2, this type corrugation has generally planar side wallportions which converge, desirably to a relatively sharp apex, to formthe generally V-shaped configuration.

Many prior art devices have provided fins, channels and the like fortransferring heat, but these arrangements have had the shortcoming inthat they will only work in their most effective manner when the finsand channels can be arranged about the heat source in a substantiallyvertical direction.

Obviously this limitation is a shortcoming of prior art devices inasmuchas prior art devices of this type cannot perform efficiently in casesWhere the heat source is of such a spatial disposition that the fins orsimilar heat radiating elements cannot be arranged in a substantiallyvertical position.

By contrast, the present invention, however, provides effective heatradiation when the device is used on a heat source having virtually anyspatial disposition and thus is not limited in its application as weremany prior art devices.

FIG. 1 illustrates typical uses and applications of the presentinvention in combination with a furnace having a boiler for heating hotwater. The furnace 10 is shown as having a hot water pipe 11a fordelivering heated water through a circulating system in a home, forinstance, and heating the home by what are commonly known as hot waterbaseboard heating units. A portion of such circulating system is shownwith a heat radiating device 12 as conceived by the present inventionenclosing the hot water circulating system adjacent to the furnace 10itself. This arrangement would provide heat radiation to the basement ofa home where the furnace 10 is located.

The hot water circulation system passes through a floor structure 13 tothe main portion of a home where a heat radiation device 14 in apreferred embodiment of the present invention is utilized to enclose thehot water pipe 111: of the hot water circulating system. Thisarrangement may be concealed by a cover plate 15 so as to give theentire arrangement in the home the appearance of a somewhat enlargedbaseboard positioned along one or more sides of a room.

The heat radiating device 12 which encloses the hot water pipe 11aadjacent to the furnace 10 is formed and fabricated as is shown in moredetail in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 2. It will be noted that thecorrugations of the heat radiating device 12 form channels and fins foreffecting heat transfer which are substantially parallel to each otherand also align in a substantially vertical direction since the heatsource which they enclose, i.e., the hot water pipe 11a, is disposed ina vertical direction adjacent to the furnace 10. After the hot watercirculating system passes through the floor structure 13, however, itmakes a right angle turn so that the hot water pipe 11b is disposed in asubstantially horizontal position. It will be noted that the heatradiating device 14 which encloses the horizontal portion 11b of theheat source has corrugations forming channels or fins which aresubstantially parallel to each other and are also skewed so that whenthe heat radiating device 14 of the present invention is enclosed aboutthe heat source 11b, the corrugations form spiral-like channels andfinsto provide more effective heat radiation by convection of thesurrounding medium which in this case happens to be air.

FIG. 3 is an isometric view of the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention enclosing a pipe, flue, or similar heat source 30,, and isenlarged to clearly. illustrate the skewed corrugations 31 which formspiral-like channels and fins inducing heat transfer through convectionof the surrounding medium in a direction illustrated by the arrows inFIG. 3.

The preferred embodiment of the present invention, as illustrated inFIGS. 2 and 3, is employed with both horizontally disposed heat sourcesof FIG. 1, the flue 16b and the pipe 11b.

Effective heat radiation would be achieved from the upper portion of theheat radiating device in any event. However, the skewed spiral-likecorrugated channels of the present invention provide significantlyimproved heat transfer through convection by reason of the fact that asthe surrounding air of the lower. portions of the heat radiating devicebecome warmer, they tend to flow up through the skewed corrugatedchannels, as is illustrated by the arrows in FIG. 3, passing over aconsiderable length of the heat radiating device before flowing freelyinto the upper surrounding air.

In FIG. 1, the flue 16a and 16b which is shown leading from the furnace10 to an exhaust stack or chimney 19 is shown to have two heat radiatingdevices of the present invention, one of which at 17 encloses a verticalportionof the flue 16a and the other at 18 encloses a horizontal portionof the flue, 16b.

While the preferred embodiment of the present invention having skewedcorrugations forming spiral-like channels or fins may be applied to aheat source of any angular disposition, the heat radiator of the presentinvention with the skewed corrugations is shown for illustrativepurposes only as being applied to the horizontal portion of the flue toemphasize its effectiveness in that particular aPPIiCaiiOIL' Aspreviously explained in connection with the heat radiating device 14surrounding the horizontal portion of the hot water pipe 11b, the skewedchannels of the heat radiator 18 enclosing the horizontal portion of theflue 16b acts in amanner to induce air flow by convection through thespiral-like channels and fins formed by the skewed corrugations, thuseffecting more efficient heat transfer than could be realized withhorizontally disposed channels or fins. Another advantage of the presentinvention is that it may be applied to pipes, flues and the like aftersuch pipes and flues have been installed, whereas a number of prior artdevices must be assembled with a section of pipe before it is installedinto a heating system and may not be removed thereafter withoutdismantling that portion of the heating system.

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the heat radiating device of thepresent invention taken through section 2-2 of FIG. 1. As may be seenfrom this illustration, the flue 16 is surrounded and enclosed bymaterial of high thermal conductivity 21 formed and fabricated into amultitude of contiguous corrugations 22 which have a substantiallygreater depth of corrugation than pitch between adjacent corrugations.For purposes of explanation, the depth of corrugation may be defined asbeing that distance between the points 23 and 24, while the pitch may bedefined as the distance between adjacent corrugations, i.e., points 25and 26 as illustrated in FIG. 2.

A relatively high ratio of depth to pitch of the corrugations hasseveral advantages. One immediate advantage is that it provides anexposure of a greater heat radiating surface, thereby improving theefficiency of heat transfer. The corrugations shown in FIGURE 2 aregenerally V- shaped; that is, the corrugations have generally planarside wall portions that converge toward an apex to provide highlyefficient heat convection and radiation. Desirably, these V-shapedcorrugations are provided in the form of skewed corrugated sheets thatare attached to heat sources disposed vertically, horizontally or in anyspatial disposition.

Another desirable feature is that deeper corrugations affordsexpandability so that a given piece of material formed and fabricated inaccordance with the present invention may be readily stretched andexpanded to snugly fit a number of different sizes of heat sources inpressure contact with the heat source.

Additionally, the deep corrugations cause air flow by convection whichtends to follow the skewed spiral-like channels and fins of the presentinvention for a greater distance, further contributing to more eflicientheat transfer.

Yet another feature of the present invention is that the deepcorrugations formed in a resilient material of high thermal conductivityprovide a means for readily and effectively retaining the endcorrugations 27 and 28 in an overlapping relationship such as iseffected by the clip 29in FIG. 2.

It should be observed that one of the advantages of the presentinvention is that it is adaptable to manufacture in continuous sheets ofconsiderable size which may be easily cut to fit many different sizes ofheat sources varying widely in diameter as well as length. For instance,the same sheet of material formed and fabricated in accordance with theconcept of the present invention may be cut in appropriate lengths toenclose either the hot water pipe Ila-11b or the flue fizz-16b, asillustrated in FIG. 1.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that the presentinvention has the fundamental advantage of being inexpensively andreadily fabricated from a multitude of available materials through theuse of conventional, simple and efficient machinery.

Additionally, it is adapted to convenient installation on a heat sourcewithout the use of special tools, and conversely may be quickly andeasily removed should the need arise to repair or alter the heat source.

Since many changes could be made in the above construction and manyapparently widely different embodiments of the invention could be madewithout departing from the scope or spirit thereof, it is intended thatall matter contained in the above description or shown in theaccompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in alimiting sense.

Having thus described the invention, I claim:

1. In combination with a tubular conduit for a heated fluid providing aheat source, a heat radiating device comprising a sheet of flexible,high thermal conductivity material enclosing said conduit, said sheetbeing formed into contiguous generally V-shap-ed corrugations, havingsubstantially greater depth than pitch and said corrugations beingskewed relative to the major axis of said heat source, whereby said heatradiating device affords improved heat transfer by convection regardlessof the spatial disposition of said heat source.

2. In combination with a tubular conduit for a heated fluid providing aheat source, a heat radiating device comprising a sheet of flexible,resilient, high thermal conductivity material, said sheet being entirelyformed into contiguous generally V-shaped corrugations and enclosingsaid conduit a heat source with one or more of the end corrugations inoverlapping engagement, said corrugations having substantially greaterdepth than pitch and being skewed relative to the major axis of saidheat source, and means for retaining said end corrugations inoverlapping engagement, whereby said heat radiating device affordsimproved heat transfer by convection regardless of the spatialdisposition of said heat source.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,721,808 7/1929Kettering 16518O 2,667,852 2/1954 Brown 29-1573 X FOREIGN PATENTS636,910 5/ 1950 Great Britain.

FREDERICK L. MATTESON, 111., Primary Examiner.

10 ROBERT A. OLEARY, Examiner.

M. A. ANTONAKAS, Assistant Examiner.

1. IN COMBINATION WITH A TUBULAR CONDUIT FOR A HEATED FLUID PROVIDING AHEAT SOURCE, A HEAT RADIATING DEVICE COMPRISING A SHEET OF FLEXIBLE,HIGH THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY MATERIAL ENCLOSING SAID CONDUIT, SAID SHEETBEING FORMED INTO CONTIGUOUS GENERALLY V-SHAPED CORRUGATIONS, HAVINGSUBSTANTIALLY GREATER DEPTH THAN PITCH AND SAID CORRUGATIONS BEINGSKEWED RELATIVE TO THE MAJOR AXIS OF SAID HEAT SOURCE, WHEREBY SAID HEATRADIATING DEVICE AFFORDS IMPROVED HEAT TRANSFER BY CONVECTION REGARDLESSOF THE SPATIAL DISPOSITION OF SAID HEAT SOURCE.